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keyboard failure

confusedinMich

Posted 06 March 2007 - 06:23 AM

confusedinMich

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Member

34 posts

I turned on my monitor and moved the mouse to "wake it up" but the mouse didn't work and the keyboard didn't work so I turned off the computer and turned it back on and on the dos(?) it said keyboard failure. This is the third time this has happened. Now, what I want to know before I go postal on Dell is - twice the tech had me turn off the computer, remove the cord from the wall and restart the computer and of course it worked. It happened again last night and sure enough I unplugged it from the wall oh and they had me hold the start button on the cpu and you could hear a noise like it was going to start but didn't - guess they call this releasing energy? There is an older computer of my friend in the same house, using the same electricity, that has been left on for weeks with no need to "release energy". I'm not an expert in computers by no means but I've had a few for the past 15 years or so and never experienced this problem.
I feel there has to be a reason for the power having to be unplugged from the wall.

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Hubster

Posted 06 March 2007 - 06:28 AM

Jack123

Posted 06 March 2007 - 04:55 PM

Jack123

Trusted Tech

Retired Staff

944 posts

01-confusedinMich-[Keyboard Failure]-6th MAR-2007

Quick summary of Cause of Problem 

turned on my monitor and moved the mouse to "wake it up" but the mouse didn't work and the keyboard didn't work so I turned off the computer and turned it back on and on the dos(?) it said keyboard failure.

This is probably due to a low  +5 Volt Standby Power being too low  and remains in  Current Limit Mode  and prevents Power Supply giving  Power OK Signal  to turn On System-

twice the tech had me turn off the computer, remove the cord from the wall and restart the computer and of course it worked. It happened again last night and sure enough I unplugged it from the wall oh and they had me hold the start button on the cpu and you could hear a noise like it was going to start but didn't - guess they call this releasing energy?

The reason for removing the AC Power is to  Reset the Current Limit Condition  Once the PSU goes into Current Limit Mode  You need to remove all AC Power & wait anywhere from 5  seconds to 45  seconds  Really depends on design of Power Supply 

And the reason for  holding the start button  is to present a load  to drain  Residual Voltage  that is the result of an Open Circuit  Cheaper Supplies  do not have any  Bleed Off circuitry  This just speeds up the process 

Either the Supply is slowly dying or is undersized  due to recent expansion  or some components or connected peripherals are drawing excessive startup/inrush currents. Could be Hard disk  Fan/s  USB peripheral could be dragging down the USB +5V Power also 

Are the Mouse and/or Keyboard USB devices?  Instead of the Standby Power  It could be the USB Power. Either remove USB peripherals except mouse & keyboard when PC is in Sleep or Off Mode 

May want to recall the conditions of when this is happening  what devices are connected ?? Is it happening during peak Electrical usage or maybe low usage times  I would suspect some component  Is PC always configured the same  or do you connect & disconnect different items  Look for a pattern  Warm Temp or cold temp  What all is on the AC Power Circuit connected to PC  Motor or compressor -

I feel there has to be a reason for the power having to be unplugged from the wall.

This could be an early warning of  Power Supply Failure  Motherboard Failure  [i]Some Peripheral Failure[/i[ - or some combination.

Forgive my ignorance but when you say power supply, standby power are you referring to the surge protector I'm using? That can be changed. The standby power ? Is that within the computer? I noticed my cpu sends off a lot of heat. What is the faulty component connected to standy power? The surge protector?How can I check the internal capacitors and voltage?

[quote]Either the Supply is slowly dying or is undersized  due to recent expansion  or some components or connected peripherals are drawing excessive startup/inrush currents. Could be Hard disk  Fan/s  USB peripheral could be dragging down the USB +5V Power also  [/quote]

sorry but I'm lost with this one. If it's something that is inside the cpu I would think Dell would have given me a decent fan to keep everything cool. Sure paid enough for this system. How does one check to see if the Supply is dying or undersized?

[quote]Are the Mouse and/or Keyboard USB devices?  Instead of the Standby Power  It could be the USB Power. Either remove USB peripherals except mouse & keyboard when PC is in Sleep or Off Mode  [/quote]

You mean remove them from the ports each time I leave the computer for long periods of time? I have an older computer made by Packard Bell that gets left on for days, weeks and this never happens.

[quote]May want to recall the conditions of when this is happening  what devices are connected ?? Is it happening during peak Electrical usage or maybe low usage times  I would suspect some component  Is PC always configured the same  or do you connect & disconnect different items  Look for a pattern  Warm Temp or cold temp  What all is on the AC Power Circuit connected to PC  Motor or compressor - [/quote]

I've had this problem two other times and the motherboard was replaced in December (bought the computer in July of same year) The only thing that is plugged in the surge protector with the computer is the printer and I never leave that on. When it happened this time I had used PSP to create some graphics, closed the program, turned off the monitor and went in the living room to watch TV. The other times it was basically the same thing - I used the computer, turned off the monitor and came back hours later.

The tech had me update the BIOS and guaranteed this will never happen again because he said it was due to outdated drivers on the motherboard. Does that sound right?ThanksEdie

Jack123

Posted 07 March 2007 - 02:54 PM

Jack123

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944 posts

02-confusedinMich-[Keyboard Failure]-7th MAR-2007

Sorry Edie for misspelling your screen-name/username in the last Post 

I'm not an expert in computers by no means but I've had a few for the past 15 years or so and never experienced this problem. I feel there has to be a reason for the power having to be unplugged from the wall.

Ok I was just giving you  reasons  for the question asked. with the information given  from a  Hardware Point of View -

sorry but I'm lost with this one. If it's something that is inside the cpu I would think Dell would have given me a decent fan to keep everything cool. Sure paid enough for this system. How does one check to see if the Supply is dying or undersized?

You did not supply enough, [In fact very little], information about your PC for an in depth repair procedure. I was just tossing possible  Hardware Issues  If you had posted in the  Operating System Forum  You would have been given a list of possible  Software Issues 

I took this from one of your earlier posts  About  Windows Vista -

I bought my computer from Dell about 6 months ago. I received a letter from Dell yesterday regarding upgrading to Vista. I thought I had done a good job of purchasing 3GHz; 1GB ram, 250GB hard drive; dual 16x dvd players; NVidia GeForce 7900 GS.

And this from your recent reply Post 

I've had this problem two other times and the motherboard was replaced in December (bought the computer in July of same year)

Why was Motherboard replaced?  Who replaced it? Was it replaced with same Model Number or was it upgraded to higher performance Board? Was it replaced prior to the problem? Or is this problem new to this motherboard?

I need the full Model Number & Name of your Dell Computer  and the Name & Model Number of the new motherboard  You should be able to find this information from your  Invoice  or Repair Ticket  I need to review the specifications of your System 

You have to know that  Dell  is a Proprietary Manufacturer  which means  Dell does things differently and will deviate from  Normal Standards  which makes it more challenging for outside consulting -

Also, I need you to give me a step by step  Turn On Procedure  and a step by step  Turn Off Procedure  And if you are using  Instant On  Feature? -

It may be easier  If you just go to a  Normal Turn On/Turn Off Procedures  Just to see if there are basic issues with the PC  Usually you have 2 Variables  Hardware - Software  Now you have a 3rd  ACPI (Advanced Configuration & Power Interface) Compliant  plus you have the  Dell Factor 

Since you are already working with Dell  Here are some questions that you can ask about

1. Does your motherboard have the latest drivers2. Do you have the latest BIOS3. Is your ACPI BIOS settings correct for Sleep/Power States Power Management Configuration4. Is your power supply  (Standby Power)  suitable for this option  5. Are Power Management Settings correct  6. Are the Motherboard Jumpers properly configured for your requirements 7. Also ask if you have a  PC Voltage/Temperature Monitor Utility so you can measure PS Voltages & CPU Temperature in real time  [Related to your remark of CPU emitting heat]  8. Ask this rep/tech  what Wattage rating is your Power Supply  and what is Standby Power Amperage Rating -

You can also go to Dells Website for your PC  And look at the FAQ Pages  about  ACPI and Power Management and/or about  Instant On  Also you can look up your other issues about the DVD and/or CD

confusedinMich

Posted 07 March 2007 - 04:29 PM

confusedinMich

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Topic Starter

Member

34 posts

Hi Jack;

I've tried to sort this all out and begin again I have a Dell XPS 400 Dimension 3GHz; 1GB ram, 250GB hard drive; dual 16x dvd players; NVidia GeForce 7900 GS with SoundBlaster XFi. The motherboard is an Intel 945P Chipset; I updated the BIOS yesterday so it is current (the tech told me that when I did this I was updating the drivers for the motherboard) The Power Wattage is 375W In my system information it says System-DXP051

The motherboard was replaced because it kept saying keyboard failure and based on the lights on the cpu the tech said it signified to him it was the motherboard.

I always use start/shut down to turn off my computer. I always push the button on the cpu to start it. I don't use the option you mentioned. The keyboard failure situation does not happen every day. I never know when it will happen. For instance I usually leave my computer on all the time - days usually and then when I've decided to turn it off by start/shut down it is the next day when I start it up that I might get the keyboard failure. But again it does not happen every time. This last time I got keyboard failure I had went back to the computer to continue working on my graphics when the mouse wouldn't move - it froze up so I turned it off waited and restarted it and got the keyboard failure.

I've decided that if this happens one more time I am going to contact the Attorney General about the lemon law. Because (I think I've said this) there is an older Packard Bell computer in this house and has been left on for months and never had to disconnect it from the wall to cure a keyboard failure error.

Thank you for all your help. I am reading things and understanding more. Watch out Dell!
Edie

Jack123

Posted 09 March 2007 - 12:47 PM

Jack123

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Retired Staff

944 posts

03-confusedinMich-[Keyboard Failure]-9th MAR-2007

I updated the BIOS yesterday so it is current (the tech told me that when I did this I was updating the drivers for the motherboard) The Power Wattage is 375W In my system information it says System-DXP051

Interesting -

Did you update the BIOS, because you exercised my suggestions from previous Post? And did you ask the Tech, - the other questions

1. Does your motherboard have the latest drivers2. Do you have the latest BIOS3. Is your ACPI BIOS settings correct for Sleep/Power States Power Management Configuration4. Is your power supply  (Standby Power)  suitable for this option  5. Are Power Management Settings correct  6. Are the Motherboard Jumpers properly configured for your requirements 7. Also ask if you have a  PC Voltage/Temperature Monitor Utility so you can measure PS Voltages & CPU Temperature in real time  [Related to your remark of CPU emitting heat]  8. Ask this rep/tech  what Wattage rating is your Power Supply  and what is Standby Power Amperage Rating

Can you share more of the answers?

This last time I got keyboard failure I had went back to the computer to continue working on my graphics when the mouse wouldn't move - it froze up so I turned it off waited and restarted it and got the keyboard failure.

Who replaced the motherboard  Was the memory changed from replaced board  They may need to be removed & reinstalled  also verify that all connections are properly connected & properly secured  Was there any improvement with the replacement?

Are you using any sleep modes or hibernation mode  when not actively working the PC? Has this problem been there from the start  You said that you purchased the PC in July of last year. When did problem start to appear?

I've decided that if this happens one more time I am going to contact the Attorney General about the lemon law. Because (I think I've said this) there is an older Packard Bell computer in this house and has been left on for months and never had to disconnect it from the wall to cure a keyboard failure error.

This is not a cure  It is only resetting the Power Supply the supply  to clear a failure  so you can boot up.

Forgive my ignorance but when you say power supply, standby power are you referring to the surge protector I'm using? That can be changed

Is this a Power Strip with surge protection  Does it have a  [b]ON/OFF Switch  If it does  You just need to turn this switch  OFF  for about 15 seconds  then turn back  ON  Then reboot  This will be the same as disconnecting from the wall 

Give me some answers  I have about 10 questions with about 4 outstanding answers  Plus about 13 new questions  Still trying to establish a starting point - Jack123